


Truth and Treasure

by jojosiewa



Series: MCYT Short Stories [14]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Pirates (Minecraft Roleplay)
Genre: Gen, Guardian - Freeform, Magic, Pirates, Possession, Swordfighting, Temple, cool pirate magic, lying, skys backstory unfolds!, the shining type possession shit bro, treasure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-23
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2020-09-24 10:50:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20357251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jojosiewa/pseuds/jojosiewa
Summary: Sky starts acting weird on a treasure hunt.





	Truth and Treasure

**Author's Note:**

> i feel like all my pirates fics are gonna be tied together now kgsdhlgfjk like damn i got a story goin huh!  
edit: it is literally like weeks later but barney's fucking accent tripped me up when i was watching and i fucking thought it was the eye of ERITAS, not CLARITAS. im an idiot

“The Temple of Mariah,” Barney said, laying a map out on the table. He pointed to a small island. “A very pleasant sounding name, but don’t be the foolish ones. It is rumored to be one of the most dangerous places in the pirate’s world.”

“Dangerous like, Dead Man’s Cove dangerous? Because that place nearly killed us,” Jin said, his arms crossed over his chest. Barney laughed.

“This is way more dangerous than Dead Man’s Cove, Jin, I’ve seen many pirates who have been driven insanes by the Temple’s powers. People do make it out, but their minds are fried, and they’re never the sames again. The only person who made it out with all of himself intact was the great pirate Suerte, and he never spoke of it after, only having claimed one piece of treasure from inside. His crew was sworn to secrecy, and he promised to hunts them down and kills them if they ever said a word!” Barney explained, clapping his hands together. His eye was sparkling with excitement, and Sky felt the familiar buzz of adventure as well.

Jin shook his head and opened his mouth, but Ross beat him to the punch. “What could possibly make this work the risk? What kind of treasure are we talkin’?”

Barney smirked. “Quantities and beauty beyond what any of us can comprehend.”

\----

“Sooo, Temple of Mariah, what are we thinking?” Sky asked, sitting next to Jin and Ross.

“It sounds a lot scarier than Dead Man’s Cove,” Ross mumbled. “I mean, your mind? Injuries to the body is one thing, but… I can’t imagine losing my mind.”

“That one guy, Suerte, did it,” Sky said, scoffing. “His name does mean luck, though. But we have luck too! We got out of Dead Man’s Cove alive, and we got the Eye of Claritas, which literally shows the way to treasure. I think it’s worth a shot.”

Jin sighed, and Sky could tell by his eyes that he was tired out from stress. Though Jin had admitted to feeling the rush the rest of them did, he’d also lost someone back at Dead Man’s Cove, and nearly lost others. He was still hesitant despite a few months having passed, and Sky could understand why. Around a minute passed, with Sky and Ross watching Jin’s facial expressions shift in the slightest as he thought on it.

“If we’re careful, more careful than we are on other adventures, maybe we can manage to get out with functional brains and some treasure to show for it,” Jin finally said, and Sky smiled at him.

“At least I can run away from skeletons now. In case that happens,” Ross added. Sky snorted, and the corners of Jin’s mouth twitched upward.

“It probably will,” Sky said, and Jin laughed a bit. It seemed to put him in a better mood.

\----

The temple was hidden deep in a jungle on a fairly large island. The temple itself was huge and ornate. It was made of stone and marble and adorned with gold accents, but oddly, none of the gold looked like it had been mined out, and despite its apparent age, it looked like it had just been built.

“This is incredible, gosh Barney, you were right. It’s so breathtaking,” Jin said, his eyes wide with wonder. The urge to step closer was so strong, and it washed over all four of them. Barney grinned and walked up to the entrance, feeling the wall, running his finger down one of the gold accents.

“We can even get somes off the walls,” he said, and Jin shook his head, snapping out of his trance.

“Wait, Barney no.” He jogged over and grabbed Barney’s wrist. “Don’t you think if it were that easy, this place would look destroyed by now? It isn’t right, we have to be more careful. Something’s definitely going on here.”

Barney stepped back and nodded. “You’re right, Jin, I don’t know what I’m thinking. Let’s just follows the path. Come on guys, watch out for traps.”

Barney wandered inside first, then Jin waited for Ross and Sky to pass him. “No riddles?” Ross asked, and Jin shrugged. Ross bit his lip. “That must mean there are other means of protection.”

A chill ran down Jin’s spine at the thought. “That would- that would make sense. Hey, Sky, you coming?” Jin looked back to see Sky standing at the entrance, wide eyed. Jin held out a hand. “Sky? Are you okay?”

Sky suddenly shook his head and grabbed his amulet. “Uhhh, yeah, I’m good. I’m coming, adventure awaits, right?” He grinned as he passed Jin, patting him on the back. “Onwards!”

Jin sighed and smiled, following the rest of them inside. Behind them, the door slammed shut, sealing them in and snuffing out the light coming from outside. Jin flinched and glanced back one last time. He pulled out his sword and followed the sound of Barney’s voice, figuring he’d never get used to things like this.

“Jin? You back there?” Two faint lights shone ahead of him, one white and another purple. Jin walked towards them, recognizing the white light as the Eye of Claritas, which Barney kept under his eyepatch for moments like these. Upon closer inspection, the purple light came from Sky’s amulet. Sky looked down at it and covered it with his hand before anyone could say anything, the Eye’s dim light just barely illuminating a look of confusion on his face.

“I’m here, Barney, do you see anything?” Jin asked, and Barney looked around. He faced three different narrow hallways. He squinted, peering through the darkness.

“I see a light where the treasure is, like usuals. It’s downstairs, but I can’t tell which hall to go throughs, the Eye isn’t showings me for some reason,” Barney said, pointing towards the light he saw through the Eye. Jin walked closer, his eyes beginning to adjust to the darkness. He peered down each hall; they all looked the same.

“Wanna take a wild guess?” he joked, and Ross scoffed. Barney let out a loud laugh that echoed throughout the temple, patting Sky on the back.

“The left one,” Sky said, pointing towards the left hall. “We should go through the left one, I- I have a feeling. In my gut.”

Jin’s smile fell. “Sky, I was joking, we need a method to the madness-”

“I just know,” Sky said again, raising his voice. The three words lingered in the air, and the rest of them stood silently for a moment, shocked. Sky huffed and started walking, pushing past Jin.

“Hey, wait up, Sky,” Ross called, running up to him. Barney and Jin exchanged glances, before they followed too.

\----

Sky was scratching at his arms as they walked through a maze of intricate halls. He’d taken the lead, the other three tailing him nervously. They didn’t speak; Sky usually carried the conversation, but he was silent, his eyes wide and focused.

“Well, this is easy,” Barney said, but Jin and Ross were unconvinced.

“Why haven’t there been any traps?” Jin asked quietly. “There’s something going on.”

“Sky, hey, are you alright?” Ross called, and Sky stopped for a moment, looking back.

“I’m fine, Ross, I just said, I have a feeling. Like I know where to go, I can sense the treasure, Barney, can’t you?” Sky flashed a brief smile. “You have the Eye.”

Barney lifted his eyepatch again, and he gasped. The Eye of Claritas revealed a faint purple aura around Sky, oozing from the amulet. It looked like nothing he’d ever seen before. “Sky, um,” Barney cleared his throat as Sky looked back at him, still scratching his arms.

“Yeah, Barney?” Sky hummed, tilting his head. The purple swirled around Sky and darkened, almost threateningly. Barney let out a breath.

“Nothing, nothing! If you have a good feelings, you follow it, you’re a natural pirate,” he said, patting himself on the chest. Sky smirked back at him and turned back around, continuing to march along.

Barney let some distance pass between them before he spoke to the others. “I see a dark aura surroundings him, something’s seriously wrong,” he whispered, patting his chest again. “The amulet, it’s the amulet.”

Jin frowned. “He said his parents left him the amulet when they abandoned him as a baby. Could his parents somehow be connected to this place? Something really fucked up is going on here, it’s-” he froze when he heard a click. He looked at Sky and leapt forward, feeling the room shake. “SKY!”

Jin pushed Sky forward and shielded him, sending them both to the ground as a wall shot down from the ceiling, sealing them off from Barney and Ross.

Jin rolled onto his back, panting. Sky propped himself up with his arms, the ribbon holding his hair back coming undone and falling on the polished floor. He brushed his curls back with his hand and got up, looking back at the wall.

“Oh, shit,” Jin hissed, scrambling to his feet and pressing his ear to the wall. “Barney! Ross!”

“Jin! I can hear you! We’re okay!” Barney’s voice made Jin sigh in relief. “Jin, I’m gonna use the Eye to get us outs of this mess! I’ll lead Ross to the treasure, Sky will lead you! Be carefuls!” Barney shouted, and Jin nodded.

“I will! See you on the other side!” That made Barney laugh. Jin scoffed, looked back at Sky, and jumped. “Sky?”

Sky was glaring daggers at him, golden eyes fierce. “You weren’t supposed to do that,” was all he said, before he turned around and kept on walking. Jin shuddered and followed, trying to stay close.

\----

“What are we gonna do now!” Ross shouted, and Barney shushed him.

“Ross Ross Ross, we’re gonna find another way! There’s always some shortcut. There has to be. Or,” Barney gasped, “Sky was takings us the shortcut way! Or, whatever is controlling Sky. Anyway, that’s why there were no booby traps!”

Ross gripped his hair. “The… the rooms were altering to suit Sky! That wall falling was meant to separate him from us!”

“Now you gots it!” Barney shot Ross a finger gun and turned towards another hallway. “I thinks the Eye is telling me go this way.” Ross jogged to catch up with him.

“But wait, if there’s something wrong with Sky…” Ross’ eyes widened, “we left him alone with Jin. And what if Sky never gets his mind back in order, what if this is what happened to those other pirates-”

“Ross, we can’t be worrying. We only can do whatever we can to get to Sky and Jin. And I know a way.” Barney put his finger below the Eye. Ross gulped and nodded.

“Aye aye, Cap’n.” Ross followed Barney down the hall, watching out for tripwires.

\----

Sky’s body burned, like his blood was boiling in his veins. The scratching no longer helped, but it was the only thing he could think of doing to ease the feeling. He was shaking and breathing heavy, but he only walked faster, his eyes wide as he mumbled to himself and stumbled down the halls, Jin still on his tail.

“Sky, slow down! Something’s wrong, you need to stop for a moment!” Jin grabbed Sky’s wrist and tugged him back. He froze when he saw Sky’s arm. Through the redness that came from all the scratching, Sky’s veins were glowing yellow, like his blood was liquid gold. Jin reached out to touch it but Sky wrenched his hand away, his eyes bloodshot.

“Let go of me. I need to reach the heart, it’s just around the corner. I need to reach the treasure, I need to guard the treasure. The temple needs me,” Sky said, deadpan. “Don’t get in my way. The temple needs a guardian.”

Jin shook his head and walked in front of Sky, pushing him back. “This isn’t you, this is something else. Sky. It’s me, Jin, I’m your friend. You need to snap out of it,” Jin pleaded, gripping his sword tight in his hand.

“The temple needs a guardian,” Sky repeated, pointing his sword. “Don’t get in my way.”

“Sky,” Jin warned, stepping back and planting his feet on the ground in a fighting stance. “Don’t do this.”

Sky only stared ahead. “You will not stop me from going home.” He blinked, and purple swirled into his eyes, glowing in the dark.

It was clear to Jin at that moment that he was no longer speaking to Sky, but to the amulet itself.

\----

“We’re super close, I can see the treasure, just a couple more turns,” Barney reassured, jumping over another tripwire. Ross stepped slowly over, hugging the wall. He shuffled along, feeling for a secret door.

His finger hooked around a small switch in the wall. He stopped and said, “Barney, stay back, I found a switch but I don’t know what it does.”

Barney swiveled around. “Ross, it’s not the treasure, don’t touch it.”

“I want to know what the hell is going on with my friend, Barney, I’ll pull every secret lever to do it,” Ross said, and he flicked the switch. The floor around him shook, and then the wall turned around, sealing Ross in a secret room. Barney gasped and pounded on the wall right as it settled back into position.

“ROSS!”

Like magic, a soft torch lit up the secret room that Ross had found. “Barney, I’m okay!” he called, and he stepped forward. He appeared to be in a bedroom. There was a bed fit for two, a desk, and a dresser. Ross stepped closer, approaching the desk with caution. He picked up a worn out book, blowing the dust off and opening it to the first page.

_‘If you’re reading this, chances are I’m dead. Or I just finished this journal and lost it. I can’t imagine how much I’ll value this once it’s complete, I honestly might just toss it in the ocean right now. My name is Luciano, by the way. Oh, I also go by Suerte. I’m a pirate, born and raised! I guess that’s it.’_ A smiley face was written at the end of the paragraph.

Ross gasped and flipped through the pages. There was more writing, but Ross paused on a drawing of a woman.

Her hair was long and fluffy, flowing down off the page. Her jawline was sharp and her face was littered with freckles. She was gazing into the distance, her eyes looking heavy with some kind of knowledge. She was shirtless, and there was an amulet around her neck. In the corner of the page the name “Mariah” was written out, followed by a heart. Ross looked closer at the amulet, and suddenly, it all started to come together.

He flipped back a couple pages. Outside, Barney heard the distant noise of two swords clashing, followed by Sky yelling. Barney told Ross to hang tight, and he sprinted off towards the noise.

_‘The most beautiful woman was in the Temple of Mariah, sitting on a throne of gold, blocking our access to the riches behind her. She instructed me to leave, told me she was Mariah, guarding her treasure. Her veins and hair glowed gold, and her eyes glowed purple. She was wearing armor, and she had a golden sword, made strong by some kind of magic. She knocked my sword out of my hand within seconds of fighting. She gave me one more warning to leave. I did, but I haven’t left the island yet.’_

Barney slid around the corner to see a small room with a golden throne. He shook his head and kept running, turning another corner and gasping at the fight that was unfolding.

Jin stumbled back as Sky slashed his sword, just barely managing to block it. Jin was getting tired out, but Sky seemed to have an infinite amount of energy.

“Why won’t you let me go home! I WANT TO GO HOME! LET ME GO HOME!” Sky screamed, his voice furious and desperate. Sky and Jin’s swords clashed, the force of Sky’s blow pushing Jin even further back. Jin’s moves were all defensive.

“I refuse to hurt you, Sky, please snap out of it, this isn’t you!” Jin managed to push Sky back. “This isn’t your home, your home is with us!”

Barney shouted and ran forward to help, but Jin screamed at him to stay back. “HE’LL KILL YOU!”

_‘It’s been a couple months since I got Mariah to leave that dark temple. She said she feels so free out on the ocean. I love her. She seems troubled by something, though. She doesn’t face danger like usual. She says she’s not the only one she has to worry about now.’_

“THIS IS MY HOME I NEED TO BE HOME I AM THE GUARDIAN I MUST GUARD MY TREASURE!” Sky screamed, knocking Jin’s sword out of his hand and lunging. Barney lunged too, grabbing Sky’s arm and wrenching the sword away. The momentum sent them both to the ground, and Barney pinned Sky down.

_‘Our precious Sky was born, but Mariah and I know that he can’t live like this. I know a quiet merchant town that’s fairly close. We’re gonna say goodbye. I don’t want my son raised the way I was. Sky, I’m so sorry.’_

Ross sprinted towards them, the book tucked under his arm. He fell to his knees and grabbed Sky’s amulet, ripping it off Sky’s neck. Sky arched his body forward and shrieked, making the other three cover their ears. The walls of the temple seemed to shake and the shriek echoed throughout the whole building. Then, Sky slumped back down, and his eyes fluttered shut.

“What, the fuck,” Jin breathed. Ross stood up, holding the amulet and the book tightly in his hands.

“There was a guardian, inside here, protecting the treasure, she wasn’t exactly human. This journal explains it all, and this amulet? The guardian wore this,” Ross explained, holding up the amulet. The faint purple glow fizzled out.

“Wait, Sky was saying he was the guardian,” Jin added, sheathing his sword. “Was the amulet trying to get Sky to the treasure room so that he could replace the old guardian? And where the hell did Sky, or Sky’s parents rather, get the amulet from?”

Ross glanced nervously at Barney. “I-I don’t know about where he got it from. All I know is we have to get the hell out of here.”

“Without the treasure? What if that amulet is the key?” Barney carefully lifted Sky over his shoulder.

“Sky’s hurt, and probably scarred, we gotta get him out of here. And careful with that amulet, you don’t want to get possessed too,” Jin said, and Ross looked down at the amulet, knowing he had nothing to worry about.

Jin approached Barney and peered at Sky, who was still unconscious. Jin noticed a strip of blond hair on the side of Sky’s head. “I hope he’s alright.”

Barney gasped when he noticed Ross turning the corner. “ROSS!”

Jin gasped and ran after him. He saw Ross standing by the golden throne, holding out the amulet.

“Show me the treasure, I have the amulet,” he said, and the walls shook. Jin and Ross stumbled, but they watched in awe as the throne slid to the side, revealing the entrance to the treasure room. Jin ran up to the door and looked inside. He was at a loss for words; the gold was brilliant, filling the large room, ranging from sculptures to coins.

“Riches beyond our imagination,” he mumbled, the golden glow of the treasure-packed room reflecting on his face and shining into the hall. Ross nodded.

“That’s a lotta gold, alright.”

\----

Sky was still unconscious once the valuables were loaded onto the ship. Ross was sitting on the cot next to him, the journal and amulet right beside him, making him twitch.

Ross was there for a couple hours before Jin showed up, holding his hat in his hands and leaning on the doorframe. Ross noticed him there, but didn’t say anything. After a couple minutes Jin cleared his throat. “How’s he doing?”

“I don’t- I don’t know,” Ross mumbled, and Jin walked over, sitting next to him.

“It was, it was really tough to see him like that, uh, I’m still pretty shaken. I want to stay as far away from that amulet as possible,” Jin said, and Ross nodded.

“I’m pretty sure it’s safe now, we’re far enough from the Temple, we claimed its treasure. There’s no purpose for it now, I don’t think,” Ross explained, picking up the journal and staring at it. “I read a bit more of this, Lu- Suerte wrote how it all worked, the temple and the amulet. I just figured the rest out from what Sky was saying and…” he trailed off, and looked away. Jin raised an eyebrow.

“And? What exactly is in there, you said Suerte wrote it?” Jin reached out for the book and Ross let him take it and open it. They were both silent as Jin read the first page, then skimmed through a couple more, until he reached the pages Ross had focused on. “Oh, god. Oh god.” Jin held the book closer to his face, his eyes wide. “Sky isn’t-”

They both froze when Sky took a particularly deep breath in his sleep. Jin stood up, and Ross followed, grabbing the amulet. “Whatever he is he’s still our friend, but, I don’t know what to do about this, Jin, do I tell him his mother was a magical guardian thing or do I, do I leave him in the dark, forget about all this magic stuff, and move on?”

Jin let out a shaky breath and shook his head. He shut the book. “He can’t know,” he said firmly, looking towards Sky. Ross crossed his arms over his chest and glanced away.

“Wait-”

“He’s finally starting to feel like himself, Ross, he’s finally settling in, he’s finally happy,” Jin pushed, squeezing Ross’ shoulder. “And this magic shit? It’s horrifying, for all of us, and we don’t know what it is or what it can do. And his past is touchy, not to mention! There’s no need to… to bring that up now. His parents are behind him, all that is finally behind him.”

Ross put his head in his hands, the amulet dangling off his left hand. “Oh god, this is so fucking crazy,” he whimpered. He lifted his hands to the top of his head and gripped his hair. “We have to figure out more, I want to figure out more. And then, we can decide again, whether or not to tell him.”

“When we’re more informed,” Jin added, nodding. Ross nodded back.

“And no telling Barney! He’s too rash, it makes me nervous.”

“Good enough.”

“Yous guys talking about me?” Ross jumped when Barney sauntered in, grinning down at Sky. “He’s still asleep, huh? Warm head still?” Barney asked, putting his hand on Sky’s head. “Hmm, not as much.”

“I thought you’d be a bit more worried,” Jin snapped, suddenly. Ross winced. “He’s your first mate.”

“Jin, hey,” Ross warned, and Barney stepped forward.

“You think I’m not worried? Of course I’m worried for him! He’s like family to me! I just know these kinds of things, okay? He’ll be okay, you took the amulet off, Ross! He’s fine, it’s the common sense thing!” Barney exclaimed, gesturing excessively with his hands.

“Pirate logic,” Jin mocked, glaring fiercely. Barney only nodded.

“His fever is going down. He’s getting better.”

“All this fighting isn’t gonna help,” Ross said, his voice surprisingly loud. “Guys, let’s just go and leave him alone.”

Jin nodded and mumbled, “You’re right,” before pushing past Barney and storming out. Ross exchanged glances with Barney. Ross then followed Jin out, patting Barney on the back.

\----

Sky swam in and out of consciousness for a while, his head pounding and his world swirling around him. His stomach lurched as everything tilted, and he finally woke up when the need to vomit became too overwhelming.

Barney was there, and he gasped when Sky leaned over, looking sick. He grabbed a bucket and kneeled by Sky, reaching him just in time for Sky to throw up into the bucket. Barney held back his first mate’s hair, thumbing at the odd blond streak.

“Hey nows, you’re good, you’re okay. Poor thing,” Barney mumbled, shaking his head. He grabbed Sky’s hair ribbon and tied his hair back into the familiar ponytail. Once there was nothing left in Sky’s stomach, he laid on his back and panted, shivering a bit. Barney nudged the bucket aside with his foot and got up. “Rise and shine.”

“I feel awful. What the hell happened?” Sky groaned, and Barney put a hand on his forehead.

“Hmm, still warms. Also oh, you were possessed. First time, I assumes?” Barney placed a damp towel on Sky’s forehead. Sky’s eyes widened.

“What? I was what?” He sat up quickly, ignoring the pain in his head and the sickness in his throat. “All I remember is being outside the temple, and then it just gets fuzzier and fuzzier.” Barney nodded.

“It was crazys, your amulet possessed you. Ross can explains it better, I can call him in,” Barney said, pushing Sky back down by the shoulder. “You rest. Try to drink and eat small things. I’ll go get Jin and Ross.”

Barney left Sky alone. Sky grabbed at his chest, but the amulet wasn’t there. Panic gripped his heart, and he sat up again, feeling bare without it.

Then Ross burst in, followed closely by Jin and Barney. Sky exhaled when he saw his amulet in Ross’ grip. “Thought you’d want this,” Ross said, hesitantly handing it back. Sky held it close and sighed shakily.

“I’m so confused,” Sky mumbled, slipping it on. Ross sat at the side of his cot.

“I know, I know, we still are too, a little bit, um,” Ross cleared his throat, “that amulet you have, um, belonged to the guardian of the temple’s treasure? Some pirate left their diary there that explained everything. The temple wanted a new guardian, and you happened to be wearing the amulet, I uh, um-”

Jin picked up the lie, noticing Ross’ discomfort. “We were thinking maybe it crossed a couple pirates’ hands and somehow ended up with your parents, by trade or something of the sort? We’re not sure, but it was just bad luck-”

“What did I do?” Sky asked. Jin suddenly couldn’t meet his eyes. “What did I DO!”

Barney could’ve sworn he saw Sky’s eyes flash purple. Jin choked out the words before he even realized it, as if something was compelling him. “You attacked me! You attacked me and you were prepared to kill me, you kept yelling that you wanted to go home. And you kept scratching your arms too.”

Sky looked down at his arms, which were bandaged up. He let out a shaky breath and leaned forward. “Oh god, I could’ve hurt, or killed you, Jin.”

Guilt pulsed through Jin’s brain like an infection. “Don’t- think like that. You didn’t, and it’s all over. We can move on. Keep resting, I’m gonna go, um, I’m gonna go count the treasure,” he stuttered, rushing out. Sky opened his mouth and reached a hand out, but he was already gone.

“I scare him,” Sky mumbled, and Ross gasped.

“No, you don’t it’s- you know Jin. He’s not well equipped for, all this pirate stuff. He’ll be okay. We’ll all be okay.” Ross wrapped an arm around Sky, but Sky only shied away.

“I need time to think.”

Barney pulled Ross to his feet. “Good idea, Sky, we’ll let you be,” Barney said, patting Sky on the back. “See yous.”

“Yeah,” Sky whispered, watching Ross and Barney leave. He brought his legs to his chest and hid his face in his arms, feeling awful.

\----

Sky’s room was fairly empty. He didn’t have many belongings, but he’d gathered some rocks, sand, and fun trinkets from different islands they’d been on, which cluttered his desk. He was suddenly compelled to sort them into a crate, unsure what else he was able to do. Strands of hair unraveled from his ponytail, falling beside his face as he leaned over the crate.

He paused when he saw a few strands of blond hair. He grabbed them and pulled them forward, his breaths shortening. He got up and picked up a golden mirror Barney gave him as part of some kind of paycheck, and he looked at himself, tilting his head to the side to better see the blond streak. “What the hell,” he mumbled, twirling it around his finger and tugging at it.

Then, Sky saw his eyes flash purple. He yelped and dropped the mirror, covering his eyes and stumbling back. He shook his head and dove for the mirror again, staring into his reflection’s now-golden eyes.

“Barney,” he mumbled shakily. “BARNEY!” He sprinted out towards the captain’s quarters.

He opened the door, but the desk was missing a pirate captain. Sky cussed and shut the door, running towards the treasure room.

It was empty too, except for the treasure itself, and an old book lying on the ground by a couple ornate chairs. Sky frowned, remembering Ross mentioning a journal that explained everything. He marched up to the chairs and sat down in one, lifting the journal into his lap and noting several bookmarks in Ross’ handwriting. He thumbed through them and noticed one labeled “Sky.” He tilted his head and opened the book to that page.

\----

It wasn’t long before Ross rushed back into the treasure room, followed closely by Jin. Ross froze when he saw Sky sitting in the chair, his back to them. “Sky, you-”

“Looking for this?” Sky lifted the book for the both of them to see. He got up and turned around, opening it to the page he’d read over and over, stepping closer as he read, “Our precious Sky was born, but Mariah and I know that he can’t live like this. I know a quiet merchant town that’s fairly close. We’re gonna say goodbye. I don’t want my son raised the way I was. Sky, I’m so sorry.” Sky slammed the book shut, his golden eyes suddenly dark with rage.

Ross gulped. “Sky, I can explain. We can explain.”

“OH I’M COUNTING ON IT!” Sky yelled, dropping the book at his feet. “Which one of you thought it was a good idea to keep this from me! This is my LIFE! MY FAMILY! Jin, I thought you’d know better!” The desperation in his voice made Jin cover his mouth. Sky wiped his glassy eyes with his sleeve. “After I opened up to you, that night on the beach, told you I was adopted! I thought that meant something, but nothing means anything to you does it! Nothing but fucking off back to Britain once you get enough money to do it! God fucking-” He held his face in his hands and shouted in anger, his shoulders shaking. Jin was frozen in horror.

When Sky looked back up, his eyes swirled with glowing purple and tears streamed down his face. “And Ross,” he spat, grabbing Ross’ shirt collar and yanking him closer as he whimpered. “After everything. I thought we were close, I thought I could trust you, even if I couldn’t trust Jin and Barney, I thought I could ALWAYS FUCKING TRUST YOU! TELL ME THE TRUTH!”

Ross flinched, but he spoke anyway. “We aren’t sure what the hell you are, so we thought we’d get more informed before we told you-”

“The truth,” Sky repeated, staring into Ross’ eyes. Ross gasped and the words suddenly spilled out.

“I’m terrified, Sky!” Sky loosened his grip, his eyes widening. “You’re my friend, and I just want to see you happy, I didn’t want to burden you with any of this, I wanted to make it a one time thing, a coincidence, to make it easier for you to process! Your parents left you and you seemed like you were moving on from all that and I just- I didn’t want you to go searching for something you’ll never find!”

Sky let go, stumbling back and gripping his hair. He yelled again and the room shook, countless golden trinkets clinking against each other in a chorus of currency. Then the purple left his eyes, and he was left with silence.

“I’m not human. Something about me isn’t human. You were just afraid, and you just- wanted what you thought was best for me. And I guess that’s what my parents did too. It was out of love. Goddammit, it was out of fucking love.” Sky’s arms fell to his sides, and he let out a shaky sigh. “Fuck. I don’t know what I am.”

“We can figure it out together,” Ross said, holding out his hand. “We have your father’s journal, I’ve read it cover to cover, I think I have a pretty good understanding of what to look for next. Sky, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“Me too, I, I really do mean the best,” Jin added. Sky looked from one to the other and then scoffed.

“Smart move, not telling Barney, by the way. We should tell him now, though. If we’re going through with this whole, magic Sky thing,” Sky said, waving his hands. Ross let out a sigh of relief, and Jin smiled. “Hey, you guys still owe me big time! You’ll be washing my clothes for months!” Sky crossed his arms over his chest as he walked past them.

\----

Barney was ecstatic. He thought it called for a celebration, despite its rocky beginnings. “Sky knows a whole new supers awesome thing about himself! Half guardian, hah!” he said, and the rest of them realized they never thought to ask the senior pirate to fill in the blanks.

“Wait, you know about this guardian?” Ross asked, and Barney nodded.

“I didn’t know the temple had one, but there ares ones guarding treasure all around! There are many different types, the one you seems to be describing, Mariah, is magic based. There are nymphs, sirens, ah, sea monsters, things like that! Basic pirate things!” Barney explained, waving it off. “Though, I’ve never heard of a magic guardian leaving theirs post and falling in love with a human and having a child. Crazy stuff!” He patted Sky on the head.

“This is so insane,” Sky mumbled. “I might be able to do magic? Like, witchcraft? Sorcery? What do you even call it?”

“Oh no, witches and sorcery are totallys different,” Barney corrected. Jin put his head in his hands.

“Of course they are.”

“Look, magic guardians only use their magics when they feel threatened, or their treasure is threatened. You must have felt threatened in a different ways.” Barney handed Sky a drink. “I wouldn’t worry too much, time will tell everything you can do, and when. From what I heard any powers you have are so teeny tinys.”

“I mean, I was offended that they weren’t telling the truth,” Sky said.

“Your friendship was threatened,” Ross said, gasping. “Your friendship was threatened! We were going behind your back, threatening the friendship, so you took means to correct it! You made us tell the truth!”

Barney laughed as Sky stared ahead, shocked. “We’re your treasure, Sky!” Barney shouted, raising his glass. Jin and Ross did too, and Sky smiled warmly, because Barney was so, so right. Sky raised his glass, and they all cheersed, downing their drinks and laughing together.

\----

“I’m back!” a man shouted down the halls of the temple, holding his arms out. There was a golden sword tied to his back, sheathed and heavy on his shoulders. “You miss me?”

The temple rumbled with anger, making the man stumble, the feather in his captain hat trembling. He laughed loudly and skipped down the familiar hallways, avoiding every trap with ease. He dragged his fingers across the wall. “It’s been a while, but you know I like to come back for my yearly visit. The anniversary.” His finger closed around the small switch. He flicked it, and let the wall turn him around, sealing him in the secret room.

His grin dropped. “My journal,” he said, his voice wavering. “Where the hell is my journal.”

He ran up to his desk and slammed his hand down. “IT WAS RIGHT HERE!”

The temple rumbled again this time, but he knew the temple long enough to recognize the difference. It was laughing, and at him, calling him a fool.

“Someone took it? Pirates? Did someone finally strip this place and… and take the journal too?” The man shook his head. “Oh god.” His eyes widened. “OH GOD, THEY’LL KNOW ABOUT SKY!”

The temple kept shaking, roaring with laughter, as Luciano Cielo left the room and ran back down the halls, dodging flying arrows and explosions. He screamed to his crew as he stumbled back outside, sprinting full speed, as fast as the open plains allowed.

“GET ME BACK ON THE SHIP NOW! GET ME BACK! I NEED TO FIND MY SON!”


End file.
